Why Kevin Hates Winter
by Skylark Evanson
Summary: Kevin hates winter. Can Gwen change his mind?


**A/N: I just kinda got this and I started it yesterday and kept going after this for the last little while. And now, you get to see it. Enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ben 10.**

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Kevin stalked into the garage. He tugged off his black knit hat and slammed his fist down onto the button that would shut the massive garage door. The huge piece of metal gave a shudder before sliding down the wall to shut out the cold. It creaked from the ice, but it kept moving. Kevin was grateful for that.

He gave a little shiver inside of his coat and finally pulled off the bulky gray jacket after the inside was closed off from the cold. He hated the cold. Kevin hated anything cold. The Null Void was unnaturally warm and he has lived there for enough of his life to learn to love it. New York had been cold, but he didn't like the slushy snow or the icy whipping winds. The Null Void had had better weather than New York.

"Hey," came the soft voice of Gwen from the shadows.

Kevin spun, his coat thrown over to the couch. He eyed her carefully, seeing her smiling. An unwavering scowl was already planted firmly on his lips. "I hate winter," he huffed, not even bothering to greet his girlfriend. He was so sick of the cold he couldn't stand it anymore.

The redhead blinked a few times before letting out a quiet and subtle sigh. Then Gwen moved towards her boyfriend as he rubbed his hands together in a pitiful attempt to warm himself up. "Why do you always find something to hate?" she asked gently, approaching him from behind as he cranked up the garage's internal heating system.

"Because snow sucks."

One of the things Gwen loved about Kevin was how he was so blunt about everything. One of the things she hated about him was how narrow-minded he was. Another sigh escaped her. "Kevin, winter is good," she told him, almost as a reassurance.

"Mhm," he said, turning and finding himself coming face-to-face with her. Usually, the two of them being that close would turn into a kiss and then seconds later, a heated make-out session on the couch. Sometimes in the backseat, if Kevin managed to get Gwen over there. "Whatever you say, Gwen." He pushed past her, eager to pull get to work on his car. He just wanted it to be warm.

"Come on," breathed the girl with the mane of fire. "Trust me, Kevin. Winter is good. Why do you hate it so much?"

"It's cold," he said, a twinge of anger catching on the edge of his voice. "And I don't like it when it's cold." He kept rubbing his hands together, another shiver running down his spine. He was made of muscle, but that didn't keep the freezing wind from pricking at his skin and making him feel like he was turning to ice.

A small pout touched Gwen's petite features. "But when it's cold out, that means Christmas is coming," she reminded the raven-haired teen. She stuck close behind him, not willing to be deprived of the precious moments that she knew would come if she harassed him enough. She liked the feel of his warm lips on hers. And he hadn't kissed her in practically a whole day...

"Which is more work for me." He put a hand on his car and turned to face her. "Christmas shoppers plus icy roads equals smashed cars. Smashed cars means busy garages. Busy garages mean I gotta work a lot more than I'd like to." He ran a calloused hand through his silky ebony locks. "That, and do you know how hard it is for me to find the perfect present for you?"

None of this had actually occurred to Gwen until Kevin brought it to her attention. She had completely forgotten that the garage was actually a real garage that Kevin actually had a job at. Things like that had a tendency to slip her mind. And she knew he usually ran tight on cash with his stepfather keeping him away from it most of the time. All of his money came from working and illegal alien technology deals. One thing she and Ben had cut him off from.

"But you get to be with your family," pointed out Gwen weakly, still trying to find the good in Christmas and winter for her favorite Osmosian.

"What part of 'I avoid my stepfather at all costs' do you not understand?" he spat at her, rage boiling up in his veins as his blood turned to flames that threatened to consume him. A deep breath calmed him down enough so that he could once more speak like a civilized human being. "I can't be there anyways if I'm working in here, now can I?"

"Relax," urged Gwen, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You're too stressed." She gave him her most heartfelt smile, hoping it could at least cheer him up a bit. Anything to get him out of the rut he seemed to be in with this anger over winter and snow.

"Because of the stupid cold," he said, his lips pursing to a straight line. "I hate this weather." Kevin drank in some air and let it all out, his anger going with it. And once more, he ran his fingers through the strands of black. "I'm sorry I'm in such a sucky mood, Gwen. I just hate this time of the year."

"You always do seem happier in the summer," commented Gwen, reaching up to touch his cheek with her fingertips. "Warm weather makes you feel alive, doesn't it?" Her eyes glittered as she stared into the obsidian orbs of the boy she had fallen in love with.

"I met you in the summer, didn't I?" he remarked, his arm skillfully finding it's way around her thin waist. And he drew her closer to him so that their bodies touched. Kevin found the heart to smile for Gwen. He knew she hated seeing him in a bad mood. So he put on a good face for her and for her alone. She of all people deserved to see him smile. "Maybe that's why I love it so much."

The redhead had to stand on her tiptoes so her lips could find his. And when they did, she felt that instant melting sensation in her heart and the flying sparks that always seemed to jump between them whenever they were this close. Her eyes shut and Gwen let her body fall into his arms, going limp as his love consumed her.

He loved it when she surrendered so easily to his grasp. Kevin tucked his beloved into his chest, never wanting to let go of her. She was his whole world, his diamond in the rough. No matter how much he hated winter, he couldn't survive without moments like this. He needed Gwen to live more than anything else in the world. Oxygen was worthless unless he had the Tennyson girl to breathe it with.

And slowly but surely, the moment had to end. "Kevin," began Gwen, her body still clasped in his muscular and warm arms, "my family, well actually my family and Ben's and Grandpa Max, we all usually throw a big Christmas party on Christmas Eve." Her eyes sparkled as she stared up at him, the dark teen obviously drinking in the moment while still listening to her all the same. "You should come. You're practically family to us."

In his usual stoned silence, Kevin kissed her crown of flaming auburn hair. "I don't want to intrude," he whispered, as if the quiet of the garage were sacred.

"It's not intruding if you're invited," breathed Gwen, also enjoying the partial silence except for the howling of the fierce winter winds outside that just reminded her of what was waiting for her when she left to head home. "Just come. Please."

He remained quiet for the longest time. It ran to the point where Gwen thought he was going to refuse again, but then he murmured, "Alright. But only if I'm not workin', 'kay?"

She felt a smile creep across her face and she saw the corner of her Osmosian boyfriend's lips turn upward in that heart-stopping, lopsided grin of his. And Gwen quietly buried her face in his chest, feeling his hands run up and down her back in a soothing way. They clung to each other like that for a long time. They were meant to be together.

"I should probably be getting home," breathed Gwen, slowly drawing her body away from Kevin's. She stared up into his orbs of black. "My parents will start wondering where I am if I don't show up soon." She moved her hands from their position behind her boyfriend's neck. The girl with the auburn hair let out a soft sigh. "See you later?"

"Pfft," said Kevin, flipping a hand at her before going to grab his jacket again off the couch. "I'm drivin' you home, what are you talkin' about?" He shot her a crooked smirk that sent her heart soaring.

Kevin could probably learn to love Christmas if he spent enough time with Gwen during the cold months of the icy winter. She had changed his mind once. She was bound to do it again one way or another.

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**A/N: Ah, there y'all go. Hope you liked it and please review!**

**~Sky**


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